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No matter how good something is for us…we seem to migrate back to the unhealthy.

OK…I’m speaking for myself here. I know there are people in this world that manage to eat “right” and live healthy lifestyles without falling off the health train. I am not one of those people. Over the years I have allowed my own rationalization, other people and (to be honest) convenience to lead me astray.
However, there are some unhealthy habits I have never returned to in the last 10 years. For example, I’ve never picked up another cigarette. I haven’t drank a soda in 9 years and for the most part I’ve stayed away from red-meat.
The first couple years of changing my diet I remained faithful to not eating hamburgers, especially fast food. But, if I found myself at a luncheon and the only dish available had beef in it…well I would eat it. I created a theory, If I have good intentions yet the waiter makes a mistake and serves me the “negative” food item…well the calories don’t count! Right?

It is amazing how I can rationalize eating things that I know are not “good for me.” I can decide that one donut couldn’t possibly have that many calories. I mean look at it…it’s so little and innocent. If I eat veggie pizza it will certainly be better for me than meat pizza…I didn’t even get extra cheese.
There are times that knowing I’ve eaten better today than I did in the past will simply have to do. Sometimes that is the best I can do.
When I walk into work and someone dropped donuts off in the kitchen for all to enjoy…I consider it a huge win if I walk on by and don’t give it another thought. So many times I’ve given myself permission to just eat one. Do you know what happens when I “just eat one?” Its a lie…I go back and eat 2, 3, maybe even 4!

I have also faced my challenges with exercise. I love to exercise. I enjoy the energy and the overall positive self image that comes with exercise. But I’ve experienced times that negative self talk tries to convince me to stay on the couch. I’ve also experienced old age. After running for several years I started to develop arthritis in my knees. After a couple minor surgeries on my knees my Orthopedic doctor highly suggested I give up running and look into cycling. I really struggled with that idea. I didn’t think cycling would be challenging enough (by the way it is plenty challenging). I honestly believed the only way I could get a decent workout was through the cardio I experienced when running.

I tried bootcamps, you still have to run. Even though the instructor told me I could do other exercises while my classmates ran, my competitive nature would not agree. So I would run, then I’d be in pain, then I would get depressed and want to give up on all exercise.

This search for a healthy life has certainly been a roller coaster ride. Over the last two years I’ve learned it is possible to be an unhealthy vegetarian…Its true. There are still plenty of “comfort foods” a person can eat as a vegetarian. Trust me, I found them all. It is so much easier to tell myself that big ol’ bowl of broccoli and cheese soup is fine because I’m not eating meat. Well needless to say, with that line of thinking my roller coaster car flew off the tracks.

There was a time in my life that I ate 2 – 3 meals a day at fast food restaurants and smoked a pack and a half of cigarettes a day. I had high cholesterol, that I was convinced couldn’t be controlled without medication, because I just knew it was genetic. If that wasn’t enough my doctor had started testing me for type II diabetes. I was certainly on a path of destruction and I didn’t even realize I could do anything different.

10 years ago this past March I quit smoking. I had smoked for over 30 years. When I laid the cigarettes down for the last time I began to eat everything in the house. Not only did I eat junk food and fattening foods, I ate till I was so stuffed it hurt to breathe.

I finally decided this simply was not going to work. And the journey began…

I started walking. Just a few months earlier I was afraid to do the one mile fun walk at the Susan G Komen 5k for fear I couldn’t make it. But I started slow….1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 1 mile. Every morning I got up before the sun, went to the local park and walked my pup Freckles. My plan was, if I get him into the habit of walking he won’t let me sleep in…and it worked.

Eventually I started changing my eating habits. I was feeling so good I decided I wanted to treat myself better. I quit eating red meat. I started reading a book called The Eat-Clean Diet by Tosca Reno. I learned how to eat foods and cook foods that were good for me. I learned to eat spinach!

I soon got bored with walking, it just wasn’t challenging enough. I started participating in boot camps and I started running. When I started running (despite being an athlete in school I always hated running) I couldn’t complete a 1/4 mile without stopping to walk. But eventually I started running more and more. I set a goal to run a 5k the next year at the Susan G Komen. I would run in memory of my Aunt Kathleen who I had recently lost to breast cancer.

That entire year, the thought of my aunt’s struggle to fight cancer, got me through the pain of training. If she could fight so hard and be so tough fighting against such a horrible disease, then something as minor as sore legs should not deter me.

I ran that 5k with a sign, honoring my aunt, on the back of my shirt. As I climbed the final hill, headed toward the finish line, exhausted and emotional, a lady tapped me on the shoulder and said, “Kathleen would be so proud.” I cried the rest of the way to the finish line. Tears of pain, emotion, love, excitement, memories of Kathleen all drained from my eyes. I had met my goal of running 3.1 miles and knew my life was changing for the better.

A lot has changed since I smoked that last cigarette. Over the next couple days I hope to share the rest of my journey to a healthier life. I hope you will stop back by to read the rest of the story.